The Witch Didn't Raise the Tyrant That Way - Chapter 6: My Heart Has Grown Too (1)

The day of action arrived faster than expected.

“I’ll be back late today.”

“What?”

“It’s the hunting competition.”

“Huh? Oh.”

One morning, Kyle woke me up early, which was unusual. For once, he got out of bed without trying to rub his body against mine. This was the first time such a thing had happened since we started sharing physical intimacy.

For the past month, the entire palace had been bustling with preparations for an event, and it seemed today was the day. I already knew the event was the hunting competition from sneaking around the main building, but I hadn’t realized it was happening so soon.

Maybe no one told me because it had nothing to do with me.

The realization hit me again. Although I was technically addressed as a guest and lady, I was nothing more than a stain that didn’t belong in this palace. I already knew this, but it still stung as I fiddled absentmindedly with my fingertips.

“The forest across the garden is the hunting ground. They’ll be hunting there all day, and then there’ll be a banquet in the evening, so it’s going to be noisy. Don’t worry—no one will come near here.”

“What about Lady Yvette and the others?”

“I’m not sure.”

At some point, Kyle had started braiding my hair. Once he gently placed the braid over my chest, he reached out to tickle my eyelashes with his fingers.

“Even if the others don’t attend, Lady Edesbach will likely make an appearance at the banquet. They’ll take care of things until dinner, so you should rest.”

“…Will you be back late?”

“Probably. Last time, they were up playing around until after midnight.”

Kyle let out a cold laugh, seemingly recalling a hunting competition he had attended during the reign of the previous king.

“Honestly, I’d love for this hunting competition and all its traditions to just go to hell. But they call it tradition, so here we are.”

“Mm, you have to do it, then.”

The hunting competition held today was an official royal event that took place annually on the ninth full moon. Last year, it had been skipped due to Kyle’s coronation, so this year, the palace had poured all its energy into preparing a grand event. Every time I loitered near the main building, I overheard endless talk about the animals that would be released for the competition.

Given how much effort the royal family put into this event, winning the competition was considered a great honor for any warrior. And Kyle had apparently claimed victory every year since he returned to the royal palace four years ago.

“Lyn. Is there anything you want?”

“What?”

“They’re releasing silver foxes this time. How about a silver fox pelt?”

“No thanks.”

“What about multicolored rabbit fur?”

“Ugh, I don’t like that sort of thing.”

“Why not?”

“It’s just pointless animal cruelty.”

“Then should I cancel it…?”

“W-What are you saying? It’s happening today!”

“Why does that matter?”

“It matters a lot.”

At my firm tone and slightly hardened expression, Kyle looked at me with a strange gaze, as if he were trying to figure out if I genuinely disliked animal cruelty, if I didn’t want to accept gifts from him, or if there was another reason. His sharp eyes seemed to probe deeply into me.

…Surely, he couldn’t have figured it out.

A short sigh trembled out of him. He furrowed his brows as though displeased and then leaned forward to claim my lips.

It was a light kiss, a playful nibble on my lips followed by his tongue gliding over where they met.

When he lifted his head, his red eyes darkened as they raked over my body. The traces he had left on me last night were still evident—my heavy, swollen breasts, my slightly softened belly, the curves that led to my plump hips, and the tangled hair between my legs, sticky and matted from his fluids, which I had only managed to wipe off with a dry towel.

He clenched his eyes shut as if trying to suppress something, letting out a deep sigh through gritted teeth. His Adam’s apple bobbed roughly as he swallowed dryly, seemingly restraining his rising desires.

Moments later, his long lashes parted, revealing his crimson eyes once more. He locked his gaze on my face.

“…Go to bed early tonight. You’ll be resting tomorrow.”

“Mm,” I murmured.

He was essentially saying he planned to indulge in me as much as he wanted the moment he returned tonight, since I’d be spending the entire day in the bedroom tomorrow.

I shuddered slightly, wondering just how many times he intended to do it for him to tell me to rest in advance. But as I reminded myself that it wouldn’t actually happen, my heart calmed down.

Perhaps too much so.

* * *

“I’ve been cooped up in the lab all day, so I’m tired. I’ll head to bed early—please, enjoy the ball.”

That evening.

As Kyle had said, it seemed the maids were all preparing to attend the banquet held to commemorate the hunting competition. By the time I finished dinner, they returned in dazzling dresses, adorned with elegant makeup, perfectly embodying the image of noble young ladies. Judging by their movements, they had planned to leave two of them to stay behind in the inner palace, but I cheerfully pushed them to go enjoy the banquet instead.

If their duties had been to serve someone of status who could attend today’s hunting competition and banquet, they wouldn’t have had to shuttle back and forth all day taking care of me. The thought made me feel slightly guilty.

But this would all end soon enough, wouldn’t it?

“If you need anything, please pull the bell rope. Becky and Susan are keeping watch on the second floor in our place.”

“His Majesty won the hunting competition, so he’ll likely be delayed accepting congratulations from the vassals. Get plenty of rest.”

“If we come across some delicious desserts at the banquet, we’ll bring them back for you!”

“No, thank you. I’m already full….”

No matter how composed and diligent the maids were in their work, they were still noble young ladies, just recently come of age. Their excitement at attending a rare banquet was evident and eandearing to see. At the same time, their complete lack of guilt or apology for leaving me behind was just a tiny bit bitter.

“It’s only natural, don’t be petty,” I reminded myself.

If not for Kyle, I would never have come to the palace, nor would I have crossed paths with noble ladies of such high rank in my entire life.

Once I saw the maids disappearing toward the main building through the courtyard, I quickly slipped into the dressing room and changed into a maid’s uniform. I also grabbed a robe to wear outside, then went to the lab to pick up the bundle of belongings I had packed in advance. Inside were precious herbs and a few potions for the journey ahead.

As for travel expenses and carriage fares, I planned to cover them by selling herbs along the way. Though Kyle had built a bridge across the ravine as I had sung of in my childhood, no hired carriage went directly near our forest. I would likely need to switch carriages a couple of times. It was a shame to leave behind so many herbs and potions in the lab, but I could only hope that when the lab was cleared out someday, those items might eventually make their way back to me.

Yes. I had decided to leave Kyle.

For now, we were drawn to each other by lust and warmth, but this relationship was flawed from the beginning. Continuing it would only hurt both of us.

For me, and for Kyle.

But Kyle wouldn’t let me go.

So, I had no choice but to leave him.

As if to finalize my resolve, I repeated the logic I had been drilling into myself for the past two weeks. Then, I placed the short letter I had written for Kyle, along with a final gift, on the workbench and left the room.

Night had already fallen, but sneaking in and out of the main building to familiarize myself with the layout had made escaping relatively easy. I passed through the courtyard and entered the main building, heading for the first-floor hall where I had often overheard conversations. Since tonight’s grand banquet was being held outside the palace, the main building was deathly quiet.

The massive front doors of the main building, which occupied an entire wall of the hall, were wide open even at this late hour. It seemed to be customary, allowing nobles to come and go freely for socializing.

…I’d better hurry before anyone shows up.

Carefully, I slipped out through a small door on the left side of the three main exits.

Though I had never stepped into the large front garden before, I figured I could manage if I stayed alert. The palace gates would surely be open for the nobles’ carriages to come and go for the banquet. I just needed to find the gate. From one corner of the garden, I glanced briefly at the giant, cube-like banquet hall lit up and bustling with the lively noise of the celebration—laughter, music from an orchestra, and the hum of voices mingling together.

The nobles I had crossed paths with in Kyle’s audience chamber, the advisory room, stairwells, and the grand lobby—all their illustrious faces must be gathered there now. They would surely be fawning over Kyle, tonight’s victor and their ruler, flattering him with servile smiles.

Perhaps, by his side, there would even be a noble lady gracing the scene with the elegance of a picture-perfect queen.

I clenched my eyes shut, pushing the unpleasant thought from my mind.

…Goodbye.

“Live happily as the king you were painted to be.”

In another timeline, you would have found happiness with someone of noble lineage, like an academy professor—someone of high status, renown, and intellect. You could easily embrace that elegant happiness as if it were always meant for you.

As for me, I lived a lonely life in my previous incarnation, dying in solitude, and have spent most of this life alone as well. So, whatever happens, I’ll be fine.

“…….”

I hadn’t said goodbye, but it didn’t matter. Kyle had left my home without saying a word, so I would do the same. Just as I hadn’t expected to see him again back then, Kyle would likely accept that this was the last time we would part, never to meet again.

Not that I hadn’t bid him farewell in my heart. These past few days, every time we embraced and gasped for breath together, I had silently whispered my goodbyes over and over.

Thank you for making me happy. Even though the sweet, innocent Kyle who shared my childhood is no longer here, the seasons we spent together, bodies entwined, will remain a precious memory for the rest of my life.

Because…

Just then, in the distance, the main gate came into view. Struggling to keep my excitement in check, I crouched low in the shadow of a building corner to observe the activity near the gate.

A carriage was rolling toward the exit, likely leaving the palace. Judging by the intricate patterns painted on it, it belonged to a noble family. Whoever it was, they were heading home in the middle of the banquet. Perhaps they had their own unfortunate circumstances, but for me, it was a stroke of luck.

Once the entire carriage clears the gate and the guards start moving to close it, that’s my chance…

Though wearing a maid’s uniform would let me move freely, the bundle I carried and the timing of my departure—during a palace-wide banquet—might arouse suspicion. I wanted to avoid drawing attention at all costs, so I fixed my gaze on the carriage wheels rolling through the gate and the guards’ movements, not daring to blink.

The moment the front two horses of the four-horse carriage passed through the gate, I thought, Now.

Just as I stepped out of the shadow to dart toward the gate—

A larger shadow overlapped with mine, and before I could react, a massive hand clamped over my nose and mouth.

The hand held a handkerchief and the scent that filled my nose…

Is that… a sedative?

It was a smell I knew all too well.

* * *